RTGDB 12

Chapter 12

“What about the money left over after buying the cheap stuff?”

I gathered some air into my palm and swallowed it with a haaap—.

“Gulp?”

At some point, the strength suddenly left his hand, which had been gripping the scabbard.

Seeing that reaction, which was practically a confession, I smiled sweetly.

‘When I looked around the village earlier, there were barely any residents. So there probably wasn’t that much in the way of supplies he needed to procure.’

In other words, if he had been planning to embezzle money, then rather than the few pennies spent on “goods,” there was a much higher chance he had been planning something with the Crystal Portal Passes, which were worth roughly half a year’s budget for a small territory.

‘Then, with the money he siphoned off…’

Hmm. I could more or less guess.

To be precise, perhaps it wasn’t exactly embezzlement?

‘I knew I couldn’t let Sir Luden go!’

I threw my arms around his arm.

“How about it?”

“……”

“If you form an alliance with me, then, um, I’ll definitely keep your secret, and I think I can also take care of those ‘things’ you secretly bought for you…”

The eyes behind the glasses looking down at me shook violently.

“Be on my side!”

He already seemed half-convinced.

Still, I clung on and swung myself back and forth!

“Pleeease? Sir Ludeeeen!”

After that, everything went smoothly.

“What I want is super simple! Just give me a ride to the Northern Mountains! And send one letter by carrier pigeon!”

“Ha. As if I’d obediently—”

Of course, he seemed a little offended by the idea of forming an alliance with a little kid like me…

“…Then, should I go?”

“I—I’ll obediently—”

“I’m going to the Grand Duke, then? Did I just take one step? Huh? Should I take the next one? Hiyap—”

“Ahem! You were talking so loudly about our alliance that I couldn’t hear you properly!”

Of course, I resolved everything peacefully through a somewhat threatening—

‘Hmm?’

No, a cooperative approach!

I sealed our alliance by enthusiastically shaking Sir Luden’s hand, who seemed to have somehow lost all his will to fight.

And so, we arrived at the Northern Mountains.

A watchtower just below the mountain slope where the Draconic Dragon’s corpse lay.

“Really… you’re saying the thing you lost is somewhere around this watchtower?”

“Yeees. Butler Camilla brought me here this morning! Umm, she said this was the best spot for enjoying the Northern scenery!”

“…Was she trying to scare you off and make you leave? Anyway, hurry up and find it! Monsters might appear once the sun completely sets.”

“Yes, sir!”

I gave him a vague answer while waiting for an opportunity to shake Sir Luden off.

Then, when he briefly left to check the monster traps,

I successfully made my way toward the place where the Draconic Dragon was!

To be precise, I had reached the pillars surrounding the Draconic Dragon’s corpse, but even that was enough for me to clearly see the silhouette of the enormous dragon lying in the distance.

My first impression of the Draconic Dragon was…

“Super black! Super huge! Super ominous!”

The corpse itself was nothing more than a bizarre mass that radiated an incredibly ominous presence.

Perhaps that was why?

The white pillars surrounding it looked even more beautiful and majestic.

“Woooow…”

I bounced up and down.

“A trace of Daddy!”

Six sealing pillars surrounded the enormous corpse.

From each pillar, chains much thicker than my torso stretched out a long way.

A total of six chains extended from the pillars, wrapping tightly around different parts of the Draconic Dragon’s corpse and trapping the evil energy pouring from the corpse within the pillars.

‘In other words, if I break just one of those pillars, then one-sixth of the Draconic Dragon’s mana will come gushing out.’

The North had been under the influence of the Draconic Dragon for the past five hundred years.

During that time, the Draconic Dragon had scattered its enormous mana throughout the land, displaying its dominion through the earth.

‘The book said they called that a “dragon vein.”’

In other words, beneath the land of the North, there were dedicated pathways through which the Draconic Dragon’s power flowed.

Dense and intricate, like a spiderweb.

It had used those pathways to warm the North, nurture armies of monsters, occasionally give birth to its own offspring, and spread curses and poisonous substances.

Then, just before it died at the hands of Grand Duke Vasily—

“Kraaaaaaaaaah! I curse you, human!”

The dragon, driven completely mad, spread its poisonous energy throughout the entire North through those dragon veins.

‘That’s the true nature of the corruption that remains throughout the North even now.’

On top of that, the Draconic Dragon itself had transformed into a source of corruption, constantly emitting evil energy.

In other words, it was basically saying, “You think I’m the only one who’s going to die? Then you all die too!” before cursing this land.

It was literally a disaster.

And Daddy’s pillars were what had stopped it.

‘Actually, purifying corruption is normally the job of a high-ranking priest, not an ordinary holy knight…’

For some reason, however, neither the Temple nor the Imperial Family had sent a priest.

In the end, Daddy, who happened to be nearby, had to step in.

There hadn’t been enough time for proper purification, so he had chosen sealing instead.

‘Honestly, sealing all of this by himself in a single night was incredible.’

Especially since his Holy Power had already been corrupted, it must have been even harder…

My eyebrows drooped sadly.

‘And then the Emperor immediately appointed the mercenary Vasily as Grand Duke of the North… sending him straight to Bertus, which was overflowing with corruption.’

It was practically a trick by the Imperial Family to isolate Vasily.

And then, worried that the people might call them heartless, they sent only a few apprentice priests.

‘They purified only Bedel Village and a few major roads, just enough for people to survive for a few years at minimum.’

“Phew!”

Adults!

From that point on, a long winter began in Bertus.

It couldn’t be helped.

The scorching mana of the Draconic Dragon that had flowed through the dragon veins had all been sealed away.

Anyway, that was everything I knew from my past life!

‘I don’t remember all ninety-nine of my lives, but I remember important information like this pretty well!’

It was the result of piecing together things I had read in books, stories Daddy had told me, and things I had heard from the mansion’s servants and Grandpa.

“Well, it’s a relief~!”

I placed the bag full of bread beneath a tree and rolled up my sleeves.

“Because I’m a child who can earn lots and lots of Holy Power~!”

[Haniel’s Sticker Book (For Children)]

Holy Power Stickers in Storage: 16

Time to purify!

I would purify the corpse, get rid of the evil energy, and draw out all that hot mana!

‘But… will I have enough Holy Power?’

I tilted my head back and looked up at the enormous corpse.

Actually, before coming here, I had had a grand goal of purifying the entire Draconic Dragon’s corpse.

After that, I had planned to drain its blood or chop off pieces of its body and scatter them throughout the North so that the heated mana could spread evenly across the entire region.

“But…”

I didn’t think that was possible.

I looked at the gigantic corpse that was too large to fit within my field of vision, then looked down at my own hand.

A tiny, insignificant hand.

A hand that had been unable to do anything.

“No.”

The question wasn’t whether I could do it.

I had to.

For Daddy’s sake!

‘I said I’d earn looooots of Holy Power while living here!’

I let out a determined snort and marched forward.

“I’m going to help too!”

The Haniel who had tormented Daddy throughout her ninety-nine previous lives was an incompetent, bad Haniel.

There was no need for that Haniel anymore.

In this life, I wouldn’t be anyone’s burden or obstacle.

I had decided to become a capable person who could handle difficult things all by herself!

“Alright.”

If purifying everything at once was too difficult, I could simply do it little by little.

The Draconic Dragon’s mana had already been divided into six sections by the six pillars.

Maybe that was actually a good thing.

‘If it’s just one pillar, I think I can handle it with my own strength!’

First, the first pillar!

I marched forward and stretched my hand into the air.

Bang!

White letters immediately burst into existence.

Vasily raised his head.

“Camilla.”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t it a little…”

He frowned.

“Too quiet?”

“This place is always excessively quiet.”

Camilla looked at the Grand Duke without much concern.

Vasily had been talking about Luden while tapping the table with his index finger.

Luden, who had seemed suspicious in the warehouse.

The Southern goods he had procured.

Warehouse…

Luden…

Food…

Bread…

The little one.

“That little one.”

Vasily abruptly stood up.

“What is the little one doing right now?”

His red eyes, as though filled with blood, widened.

[If you want to use multiple stickers at once, try using the [Synthesis] function!]

“Huh?”

There’s a function like this?

When I answered, “Yes!” a giant thumbs-up sticker dropped down with a flash of brilliant light.

[Sticker Condensing Holy Power from the Divine Realm (x16)]

• Big. Cute. M size.
• Easy to stick, but impossible to ignore!
• Press firmly so the corners don’t peel off. (Sticker shape is random!)

“Awesome!”

I took a deep breath, then—

Smack!

I stuck the giant sticker right onto my stomach.

It was slightly too big, so there wasn’t quite enough room on my hand or forehead.

Shhhhhhh—!

‘Whoa.’

Maybe because it was a sticker that had condensed all sixteen stickers into one, a purer Holy Power than before surged through my body all at once.

But the Holy Power couldn’t pool anywhere inside my body and instead was pushed back outside.

Bang!

[Haniel, with a Little Holy Power Flowing (x16)]

• Holy Power flows around the body for a set amount of time. (15:00)
• Thanks to the halo effect, you somehow look slightly more omnipotent.
• Purification power can be adjusted.
• Corruption, move aside!

[Bonus] Cuteness increases by 20% due to the sticker effect. (Children only)

I blinked blankly.

‘It really works!’

Back when I had been kidnapped by a new monster at the Northern Gate,

I had stuck a Holy Power sticker onto my forehead and escaped.

“Help me! Save me!”

“Kieeeeeeeek—!”

Back then, I had acted purely on instinct…

But thanks to that, I had realized something.

If I stuck a Holy Power sticker onto myself, I could temporarily wrap Holy Power around my body like clothing!

‘And if I can wrap it around my body…’

– Purification power can be adjusted.

‘I can use “purification power” through Holy Power according to my own will! Just like priests do!’

Of course, there was a time limit.

But fifteen minutes was more than enough.

“Alright!”

All I had to do was approach the pillar like this and pour Holy Power into it!

I marched forward like a hero who had turned the tables—

Hmm?

“What?”

Was it just my imagination?

Why did it feel like my feet weren’t moving forward?

‘Ah! No way. Did Sir Luden already catch me?’

No!

“Si, Sir Ludeeeen? Let go of meee.”

My body slowly rose into the air.

I flailed my arms and legs while floating.

“I’m a little busy right now, so—ah! Sir Ludeeeen…”

Unable to stand it any longer, I whipped my head around.

And there, I met…

Red eyes.

The fierce eyes suddenly softened and became round.

“Don’t you know?”

His low voice made the hairs on my body stand on end.

“W, what do you mean?”

“When children get quiet, it means they’re causing trouble. One hundred percent of the time.”

“Un, unfortunately, I’ve never raised a child before…”

“Yeah. I didn’t know either.”

My body floated up into the air.

Then I landed with a soft thump against his thick forearm.

“I found out today.”